Kasab to plead for life before SC

Mumbai: Ajmal Amir Kasab may have come prepared to die as the trial judge had observed. But now that the Bombay high court has confirmed his death sentence the Pakistani gunman says he will appeal against it before the Supreme Court.
Kasab’s court-appointed lawyer, Farhana Shah, with advocate Shaikh Yakub Yusuf met him at Mumbai’s Arthur Road jail on Wednesday, two days after the HC upheld the capital punishment handed out by the trial court. “Main appeal karoonga (I will appeal),” said Kasab after Shah explained to him that he has the right to challenge the verdict. He has three months to file the appeal.
The lawyers said he appeared weak and was mostly quiet. But, displaying a sense of awareness and alertness, he repeatedly asked for a newspaper to read about the court ruling. “He kept asking for a newspaper,” Yusuf said. Kasab nodded to most things lawyers said with a quiet theek hai (okay) and returned to his cell after expressing his resolve to appeal.
The jail superintendent had explained the verdict to Kasab on Monday and when Shah spoke to him he said he would exercise his right to appeal. The copy of the voluminous verdict is yet to reach Kasab. The 1208-page judgment bound into five volumes will be delivered to him soon. After that, he will have to write a letter to the jail superintendent about his wish to appeal against it.

Indo-Pak home secy level talks on Mar 28-29:

Marking the first step in resumption of the stalled dialogue process, home secretaries of India and Pakistan will hold talks in New Delhi on March 28 and 29 onvarious issues covering terrorism and progress in 26/11 trial. This will be the first structured bilateral secretary-level meeting on counter-terrorism after the recent Indo-Pak decision to resume talks. PTI